The Fence

Two good op/eds today on the separation barrier that Israel is building and the ICJ's ruling on it. Benjamin Netanyuahu clearly explains why it is that Israel needs this fence and tries to debunk some of the Arab propaganda that has made its way into the debates about it.

First, Israel is not building the fence on territory that under international law can be properly called "Palestinian land." The fence is being built in disputed territories that Israel won in a defensive war in 1967 from a Jordanian occupation that was never recognized by the international community.
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Second, the fence is not a permanent political border but a temporary security barrier. A fence can always be moved.
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Third, despite what some have argued, fences have proven highly effective against terrorism.
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Instead of placing Palestinian terrorists and those who send them on trial, the United Nations-sponsored international court placed the Jewish state in the dock, on the charge that Israel is harming the Palestinians' quality of life. But saving lives is more important than preserving the quality of life. Quality of life is always amenable to improvement. Death is permanent. The Palestinians complain that their children are late to school because of the fence. But too many of our children never get to school — they are blown to pieces by terrorists who pass into Israel where there is still no fence.

In the last four years, Palestinian terrorists have attacked Israel's buses, cafes, discos and pizza shops, murdering 1,000 of our citizens. Despite this unprecedented savagery, the court's 60-page opinion mentions terrorism only twice, and only in citations of Israel's own position on the fence. Because the court's decision makes a mockery of Israel's right to defend itself, the government of Israel will ignore it. Israel will never sacrifice Jewish life on the debased altar of "international justice."

Dick Morris, meanwhile, urges Sharon to continue building the "wall".

AS the Cold War waned, President Ronald Reagan went to Berlin and defiantly turned to the Soviet Union and said "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!" Now, we should turn toward Israel and say, despite the recent decision of the International Court, "Mr. Sharon, build this wall!"
The contrast with Berlin is striking: Nikita Khrushchev built the Berlin Wall to keep people in; Israel has built its fence to keep terrorists out.

The 480-mile security fence is being erected by Israel to keep out Palestinian terrorists who have killed almost 1,000 civilians since their campaign of suicide/homicide bombings began. To put the Israeli losses in perspective with their small population, that death toll is the equivalent of 50,000 dead in the United States — slightly fewer than we lost in the entire Vietnam War.